[Bevan Jonsson]

Hi all,

Extreme amateur here looking to make my first purchase on Kult of Athena. I have decided that for my first weapon, I want a mace of some sort. From the selection available on KoA, there are four that appeal to me and I'm curious what you guys think about them and which is the more devastating weapon. I've tried looking for reviews on the products but all I can find are the crappy ones that break on first use.

All of these maces have KoA's "Battle Ready" tag on them. What exactly does this mean? Is it a guarantee of it's durability?

1. (Unknown Manufacturer) Late Medieval Flanged Mace - 416608100
http://www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=...anged+Mace
21 3/8" long
2lb 4.5oz
$80

2. Arms & Armor High Gothic Mace - AA193
http://www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=...othic+Mace
22 1/4" long
2lb 10.2oz
$380

3. Arms & Armor Spiked Mace - AA004
http://www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=...piked+Mace
24 3/8" long
3 lb 2.2 oz
$320

4. Ritter Steel Authentics Skull Mace - 2609
http://www.kultofathena.com/product.asp?item=...Skull+Mace
29" long
7lb 8 oz
$151

[Bevan Jonsson]

I have found a review of the Ritter Steel Spiked Flail in these forums. It says the spikes are made from mild steel and can/will bend. This is not convincing.

[Lloyd Winter]

I've had an early version of the A&A gothic mace for almost 25 years now. It's the best looking mace I've ever seen and it's one of the most durable too

[Bevan Jonsson]

[Nathan Robinson]

Anything from Ritter Steel is overweight and meant for display. It's not really representing anything from history. The "Unknown Manufacturer" one is absurd in proportion, Both those examples are just plain ugly.

You can't go wrong with Arms & Armor. The Gothic mace is my favorites.

[Leelund K]

Are the shafts on the A&A maces hollow?

[Jeremy V. Krause]

Hi Bevan,

Check out these maces from Todsstuff. I have one of them and it is really nice. Tod makes a top notch product as others here will attest.

The thing to know about these maces is that they are pretty small and light- which is consistent with period examples. Thing is that you don't really need a heavy mace at all to inflict severe damage due to centrifugal force.

http://www.todsstuff.co.uk/todsfoundry/mace.htm

[Lloyd Winter]

[Michael Beeching]

The A&A Mace is solid-shafted. The weight is not much more than a typical sword, however, and due to the mechanical disposition of the weapon, it feels a bit lighter than it really is.

The most important factor I can think to impart about the mace is that it is not well designed for extended strikes. This is most likely due to the fact that the one doing the striking would not be able to extend or flex his wrists well... on account of him being an armored fighting man fighting other armored fighting men. In short, I think the original weapon was intended to be used by the gauntleted hand, and you should at least wear gloves when attempting any serious drills with the weapon.

Last point: yes, it will bend. Beat on anything enough, and it will start to deform, especially when it's just tool steel. I still need to grab a mallet and muscle it back to true at some point. This is not raising any dislike for the weapon on my end, but you should be aware that the mace shaft is not spring-tempered, and like any softer ferrous metal, it will start to deform when subjugated to repeated blows. I do not know how well a spring-tempered shaft would fare on a mace, but it is sensible to make the shaft a little softer to deal with the stress of impact. If you ever decide to try the mace out against a target, be advised that some bending can occur.

...Note that I might be mistaken on my assessment of the mace's metallurgy. Craig could answer those questions better than I could any day of the week. And, if he does, try to get him to do it here!

*****

My honest opinion is that, if you want to learn about using maces, you do not need to reach so deeply into your pockets for the A&A example - a trial run with Windlass would probably do. If you want to have something which can be both displayed and used confidently, I would absolutely recommend the Arms & Armor mace. I have no regrets about my purchase.

[Jason Elrod]

I've owned both A&A's spiked mace and the gothic and they handle completely differently. The gothic mace is more agile while the spiked mace is more of a bruiser. I actually found that the spiked mace was hard to control. The fine finish on the shaft made the handle slippery and I never felt that I had a secure grip on the weapon.

Of the ones that you have listed I would go with the gothic mace. Mine actually rings when it hits something or even brushes against my leg when I walk. It's a very pleasant sound. I love mine.

Do you want to take into account historical accuracy or a certain time period or location for your first mace purchase or are you just looking for something you can bash about?

Tod's stuff mace is a great suggestion but if I were starting out and I didn't have a particular time frame in mind, I'd probably go with A&A's Iberian Mace. It is half the price of the others and from a manufacturer that I trust. At the $150 price point I wouldn't feel to bad if I didn't like it and it should be sturdy enough to do some heavy hitting

[J. Nicolaysen]

[Edward Lee]

I have the spiked mace from arms and armor, and this thing is hewavy, I have hard time wielding it with one hand, but thats just me.

[Bevan Jonsson]

Yes, I've already emailed A&A to see if he will do some custom changes to the spiked mace for me.

1. A leather wrap on the handle

2. I'm not a fan of silver/shiny weapons. I'll see if he can "blacken" the piece for me in the process.

[Craig Johnson]

[Edward Lee]

Spiked mace construction





Spiked mace shaft is very well made, unlikely to bend or break like my Hanwei spiked mace.

[Bevan Jonsson]

This idea has hit a massive problem. Importing maces into Australia is illegal (yet killer swords are ok) unless I get a special permit from the Attorney General's office.

Looking to get such a permit, I need to have a lockable display cabinet for it first.

[Jeremy V. Krause]

[Mart Shearer]

Have they outlawed wooden cudgels, clubs, and bats too?

[William P]

[Edward Lee]

I understand that Canada don't allow flails because the chain can be used to choke people. Not sure about this mace problem, but good luck to you.